First place overall is a position teams strive for. They spend the majority of the season in this pursuit. In the PWHL however, it's turned into a curse to be first already.
In the league's inaugural season, the Toronto Sceptres, then known as PWHL Toronto, finished six points ahead of second place Montreal, and 12 points ahead of third and fourth place Minnesota and Boston. Quickly, Boston swept Montreal, and the Toronto Sceptres, who chose the Minnesota Frost as their opening round opponent, fell in five games.
During the PWHL's second season, the Montreal Victoire finished five points ahead of second place Toronto, and nine points ahead of both the Ottawa Charge and Minnesota Frost. Again, in short order, the first place Montreal Victoire who chose the Ottawa Charge as their opponent were eliminated in four games, and Toronto fell in four games to Minnesota.
It seems strange to see the first and second place team in two straight seasons fall to the bottom seeded teams, but in the PWHL, it also shouldn't be unexpected.
Parity The Trademark Of The League
If you ever listen to PWHL executive vice president of hockey operations Jayna Hefford, she often discusses the parity in the PWHL. Through the inaugural signing period and draft, each of the PWHL's six teams were formed on the premise of parity and competitiveness across the league.
That's certainly been the case this season and last.
Heading into the playoffs, the Ottawa Charge won their final two meetings with the Montreal Victoire. The Minnesota Frost beat the Toronto Sceptres four of six games this season, and lost the other two by a single goal. Hardly the imagined gap between teams at the top and bottom of the playoff rankings.
This season the PWHL operated with four playoff teams. Due to the small number of teams, the gap is already smaller. It's not the equivalent of a first place versus eighth place team. It's the equivalent of the NHL's conference finals, by which time there's no longer any upsets being discussed.
Next season with eight teams in the league, a more sizeable gap from top to bottom will likely emerge, but for as long as the PWHL can hold onto parity in a smaller league, the more often these "upsets" will occur.
Playing Playoff Hockey Before The Playoffs
Whether they were winning or losing, the bottom two teams entering the PWHL playoffs the last two seasons have been playing for their lives for the week(s) prior to the postseason. This year when the league returned from the World Championships, the Ottawa Charge and Minnesota Frost needed every point. They were both in desperation mode and playing what they both referred to as playoff hockey before the playoffs had arrived. With that type of mindset in place, it's no wonder the top two teams who could manage their lineups, rest players, and cruised into the postseason were a little more relaxed heading into playoffs, a state that backfired.
Worlds Wreak Havoc On League
Spending three weeks with half your roster on one side the world, and the other half of your roster still practicing together as a team is disruptive. Doing that less than a week before playoffs start is illogical and has wreaked havoc on the PWHL. The extended break for World Championships in April has disrupted team and player momentum, and in the case of a team like the Boston Fleet who entered the World break confidently in a playoff spot, and left the World break without their starting goalie Aerin Frankel, and inaugural leading scorer Alina Muller, who were both injured at Worlds, hurt. There's no way the PWHL can continue to participate in the World Championships in April and return with only a handful of games remaining. Either the league will need to start earlier to be done in time for Worlds, the IIHF will need to shift Worlds to November or January, or the league will need to stop participating in Worlds altogether. The two entities can no longer compete with each other, and also negatively impact the product on the ice for each other. The Worlds will be moving, because all of the world's best players are now on the same page that the event can't be where it is in the PWHL era.
The factors of the World Championships, parity in the league, and the desperate finish to the year for the bottom playoff teams all combine to form a perfect storm for top teams in the PWHL. It may not be a curse of the first place team, but if the league's first two seasons are any indication, things are trending in that direction.